A Promise Kept
by Bralt
Summary: Okay so this is about Halt's promise to Daniel and some times that he remembered it and revealed it to some people. Spoilers for 1-2 and then 3 and 11
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not under any circumstances own Ranger's Apprentice and I don't think I want to. I mean, who would want to be responsible for Halt? *ducks to avoid arrow* heh heh, I mean who would want to umm...be responsible for...oh heck with this, I meant what I said, nobody wants to be responsible for somebody that throws people in moats! *runs before Halt comes***

**I'm on a roll, you wouldn't believe how many plot bunnies attack when you can't write**

Will lay on his bed wide awake despite the late hour. He couldn't get to sleep, the events of the previous night running through his mind making him smile despite the fact that it hadn't exactly been the best day he had ever had. Breaking into the baron's study, Halt catching him and then the revelation that Halt wanted him for an apprentice. He had been worried at first but after a day with the Ranger Will knew that it was better than being condemned to the fields as a farmer. He sat up in his bed as he saw a line of soft light beneath his door, revealing that somebody was in the main room of the cabin. Will frowned, he knew that nobody else would be in the cabin besides himself and Halt but he had thought the older Ranger had gone to sleep hours ago. Carefully Will made his way out of bed and for his standards he thought he stayed quiet. Will opened the door to his room a little and peered out into the main room. The coals in the fireplace glowed slightly, casting just enough light to illuminate the figure sitting in a comfortable chair next to them with a cup of coffee in his hands. The candle by Halt gave light to half his face up and Will could see that the Ranger was thinking deeply from the slight frown that covered his face. After a few moments Will was surprised to see Halt look up at him as if he had known Will had been there the entire time.

"I thought I told you to go to sleep? Apprentices don't perform housework very well if they're only half awake," Halt said flatly, without a trace of sarcasm or humor in his voice. Will froze and Halt sighed. "Well if you aren't going to take a hint and go back to sleep you might as well tell me why you're up." Will nodded and froze again, unsure of what to do. Halt rolled his eyes. "Come take a seat." And he motioned towards a chair on the opposite side of the fire.

Will slowly made his way to the chair, not sure what he was going to say once he got there. He sat down in the chair and looked at Halt. Like before, he noticed that the Ranger looked different without the cloak. Halt's slight yet muscular frame leaned back into his chair as he raised his eyebrow expectantly at the boy facing him. Will looked away from the dark eyes, trying to stall. He looked at Halt's salt and pepper hair and his beard and mused over how it looked like he cut it with a knife before he realized it had been nearly ten minutes of silence. He noticed with some embarrassment that Halt was still looking at him expecting an answer.

"W…Well I was ummm…I was trying to fall asleep but I couldn't," Will stammered, he wasn't too afraid of the Ranger anymore but he wasn't completely comfortable near him either. Will looked away again.

"That much seems to be obvious," Halt said in the same deep voice that held no hidden humor. In the silence that followed Halt finished his coffee and looked into the dying coals, they would go dark soon. Will looked at Halt curiously; the Ranger seemed to be thinking about something still. "Are you done staring?" Halt asked like he had earlier. Will, who hadn't consciously been staring, started a little.

"No, yes I mean no. I mean I wasn't…I was...," Will said quickly before forcing his eyes to his bare feet, he was a little embarrassed and was worried to see how the Ranger would respond. "Sorry." Halt looked at him with an eyebrow raised yet again and if Will had looked up he would have seen that there was a slight show of amusement in Halt's dark eyes.

"No need to be," Halt said quietly when Will didn't look up. Once again he looked into the coals with the distant look, this time Will couldn't help the curiosity that burned inside him. His eyes slipped back to the figure and studied him for a few moments.

"What are you thinking?" Will asked in an awkward whisper, hoping Halt hadn't heard him after he had said it. He didn't even know if he was allowed to ask the Ranger about his thoughts but something about the look in Halt's eyes had told Will that something was bothering the Ranger.

"No, I suppose not," Halt said without looking at the boy. After a few minutes of what felt like awkward silence for Will, Halt tore his eyes away from the coals that had finally died out leaving the candle to provide all the light. He stood up and walked over to the table trusting his keen eyes to lead him. He set his cup down and went back to retrieve the candle. He looked at Will. "We have a busy day tomorrow, you should get to bed," Halt said and Will knew by now that 'we' meant him.

Without saying anything Will nodded and stood, he walked towards his room. As the door closed softly Halt looked at the flickering flame of the candle he held, remembering a day fifteen years ago.

"I promise Daniel, that boy will meet no harm," Halt said quietly to himself. He had promised Will's father that he would protect Will and his mother. Will's mother had died for Halt and now he felt that he owned everything to Will, he had been the cause for the destruction of his family. And knowing that he had failed half of what he had promised Daniel made him feel guilty enough; he didn't need to be the reason for Will's death as well. Halt nodded confirming to himself that he would protect Will through and through, even if it meant his own demise. "I promise," Halt said once more before retiring to his room for the night.

**Please review because this is my first try at Hurt/Comfort or whatever category this is in, it will be better next chapter I hope. But all these chapters are basically just moments that Halt remembers his promise so... Tell me if you thought Halt was OOC or if Will was to comfortable near him or if you hated it, thought it could have more or less of something and all that:)**

**Okay so basically what's happening between this and the next chapter is that Will goes to Skandia and Halt throws Digby into the moat so basically the rest of book 1 passes and the start of book 2**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: As usual I do not own Ranger's Apprentice**

**Okay so I figured this all out, what I am writing is basically times that Halt remembered the promise that he made to Will's father. Ultimately this will explain what Halt was thinking that led up to his wanting to go and get Will from Skandia**

Halt sat at the table in his empty cabin and continued to read the notification of displeasure Baron Arald had sent him. It was referring to the incident with Sir Digby, Halt had been called up to the castle to discuss it but had been a bit difficult and the only thing the Baron could think of doing was to send him a letter of displeasure. The truth was Halt had already been annoyed when he went to see Digby about his contribution to the war effort and Digby's actions hadn't done anything to improve his mood so he had taken it upon himself to solve the issue and toss the man into his moat. After a few moments of debating whether or not to burn the letter Halt heard hoof beats outside. He looked up and listened, it wasn't a Ranger horse so he had no idea who it could possibly be. He sat silently while he listened to the person climb the steps to the verandah and a few seconds later the creak of rusty hinges and a flood of midmorning light from the door announced the arrival of Lady Pauline. Halt raised his eyebrows at the courier as she silently took a seat across from him at the table; Halt didn't say anything as he set the notification down and sipped his coffee.

"Halt, I'm here to ask you something," Pauline said when he had finished his coffee. She pushed her graying hair out of her blue eyes and looked at Halt in a stern yet delicate manner.

"Which is?" He asked quietly, he had a thought as to why the beautiful courier had come down to see him and he was debating what to say, the truth or a story.

"Why are you being so…so difficult lately?" She asked in a concerned voice, Halt was usually not easy to work with but he seemed even more as of late with Will gone. She and the Baron had begun to think that Halt was lonely but she doubted that was the reason, it didn't seem like him to be that way. He had lived alone for almost his entire life except for the years he shared with apprentices. Halt didn't answer; instead he leaned back in his chair and traced the lines in the rough wood of the table. Pauline sighed, she hadn't expected Halt to pour out all that was wrong but she had at least thought he would tell her something that hinted at it.

"I'm concerned," Halt said quietly just as the elegant courier was deciding whether to leave or not. He avoided her gaze and instead fixed his eyes on the old wooden door behind her.

"Everybody's concerned, a second war with Morgorath is coming up and it seems that the other fiefs are bent on not doing their part," Pauline said a little relieved that that was all that was wrong. She gave Halt a small smile that disappeared when he gave a slight shake of his head. She looked at him curiously. "What are you worried about then?" She lay a hand on his where it lay on the table. He tensed a little but didn't try to shake it off.

"I made a promise," was all he said after a while, Pauline kept her appearance but inside worry was building, if Halt had gotten himself into any more trouble she didn't know how Arald would handle it.

"What promise was that?" She asked quietly, as far as she knew Halt didn't make promises that he couldn't keep so it seemed odd that he would be concerned about one.

"I made a promise to Will's father," Halt said in a whisper as he pulled his hand away from Pauline. She pulled her own hand back and sat patiently waiting to see if Halt would continue with his thoughts even though she was dying to hear about it on the inside. She knew Will as the ward that everybody else knew him as, the boy with no parents, so hearing that Halt had made a promise to the boy's father was very intriguing. "He died for me at the battle at Hackham Heath, his dying wish was for me to protect his wife and child," Halt said in the same whisper, his eyes seemed distant as if he was seeing into a past moment and though there was a lack of details, Pauline decided not to question him further. "His mother died as well for me," Halt said as he lowered his head to look at the table. Pauline was shocked by the news but looked at Halt sadly, she couldn't imagine what the Ranger was going through, knowing that he had accepted Will as an apprentice and had been the cause for the boy's parent's deaths.

"But why are you worried about that now? You've done excellent with Will, you protected him with the boar and you protected him with the battleschool apprentices," Pauline said softly, trying to comfort Halt who's face immediately hardened, he didn't need anybody to comfort him.

"I put Will in danger," Halt said a bit louder. "And it's going to be my fault if Will doesn't come back because I was the one who sent him on the mission," Halt said while dropping back into the whisper. It seemed unlike Halt to discuss things such as this and Pauline knew that it had to be eating away at him if he was going to be willing to talk about it.

"Halt, he's a Ranger, he's going to be in dangerous situations and you can't help it," Pauline said in her soothing voice as she caught Halt's eyes but he was already shaking his head again.

"I could have helped it this time, I promised his father that I would but I didn't," Halt said while looking Pauline in the eye. She saw a flicker of sadness in his eyes and knew that if anything happened to Will on the mission then Halt would do anything within his power to fix it if it could be fixed. And if Will died she knew that Halt would find it to be his fault and she couldn't imagine what would happen.

"Nothing's going to happen, he's with Gilan, the one person you trust the most next to Crowley," Pauline said. Halt looked away again and after a few minutes she realized that it was her time to leave. "Bye Halt," she said as she stood up and headed towards the door.

As she shut the door behind her she swore that she had heard Halt say, "A promise is a promise and I'll do anything to keep it."

**I know this has basically no plot but you can still review. I think Halt was a lot OOC but that doesn't mean you shouldn't review**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: How many times do I have to say this? I do not by any means own Ranger's Apprentice**

Halt stared at the fast leaving wolfship, still muttering his promise to Will. The waves lapped around him as Abelard stood chest deep in the water watching the ship as well, after a while the horse gave a soft nicker and Halt came slowly back to his senses. He looked down at his bow that had helped him through so many situations but hadn't been good enough for the one situation that he had needed it the most. Abelard nickered again but Halt ignored him, his mind filling with thoughts of his promise to Daniel and his undying feeling of owing Will his life. The only thought that could form in his mind was the thought that he had just broken that promise, the only thing he could feel was misery for the loss of his apprentice and the only thing he could hear was his promise to Daniel echoing throughout his mind. The sound of an approaching horse forced him out of his state as he spun around in his saddle with his bow raised and an arrow knocked.

"Don't shoot!" The figure on the beach called and Halt recognized the voice to belong to Crowley who was sitting astride Cropper. Halt lowered the bow but didn't make any movements to return to the shore. Instead he looked back at where the wolfship had been a few minutes earlier, he stayed that way as he heard splashing behind him meaning that Crowley was coming to see him. Soon the commandant was sitting beside him on his own horse.

"He's gone," was all Halt could manage to say. Crowley stayed silent, he couldn't relate to what Halt was going through, instead he looked out at the blue sea imagining the lands far away. Will was out there and the commandant knew what Halt was going to say before he even said it. "I have to go save him," Halt said turning his head quickly to look at the commandant, under his cowl Halt's eyes burned with determination.

"You can't Halt," Crowley said quietly, it hurt him to decline his friend but he just couldn't let Halt go. The king would want the entire Ranger Corps. to help clean up the rest of Morgorath's assistants and the job always came first. Halt's face hardened and he glared at the commandant.

"Let me rephrase that, I'm going to save him," Halt said with a voice that warned for no arguments. But Crowley was shaking his head before Halt finished.

"You can't, we need you here Halt. All the Rangers will be needed to clean this mess up and I'm afraid to say that we can't spare you." Crowley looked back at his long-time friend. "Besides, you don't have a plan, it'll take a while for them to get wherever their going. How about you stay here for a few months and help then we'll see if you can be spared," Crowley said trying to find a compromise; he knew it would be pointless to try and talk the stubborn Ranger out of it. The only noise for a while was the waves rolling by them then Halt turned Abelard around and headed back to the beach where he dismounted and sat down on the sand, events of the day rolling through his mind.

He had a promise to keep, he had to save Will no matter what or else he would have completely failed Daniel and he couldn't live with that. He had grown to like the apprentice and the promise had turned into more of a law with him, he refused to let Will just be taken like that. Crowley eventually got to the shore and dismounted to sit beside Halt in silence. Surprisingly it was Halt who broke the silence.

"I have to go, I have to." Halt's voice was strong and determined.

"You can't be spared Halt, just give it a few months then we'll see." Crowley looked back at Halt and was surprised to see that a single tear seemed to be rolling down his face. "Halt, you know as well as I do that he's a Ranger. It doesn't matter if he's an apprentice or not, he wears the necklace that marks him as one of us. He knew that being a Ranger was dangerous, that something like this was quite possible but he still accepted it, and now he'll just have to hang in there." Crowley didn't mention the fact that they might never be able to get the boy back; it was all a matter of if Halt could be spared.

"Exactly, he's one of us and I need to get him back. I promised his father." Halt knew without looking that Crowley's face was one of confusion. "I promised I would protect Will and that's one promise I refuse to break." Halt shook his head. "I owe my life to Will, the least I could do is save him." Halt stood and dusted the grainy sand off of him. Crowley stood to look him in the eye.

"No, Halt. You can't go, I refuse to give you my consent," Crowley said sternly.

"Then I'll go without it," Halt said simply. Crowley shook his head again.

"No you won't because then you'll be banished from the Corps." That made Halt stop and think for a moment before he squared his shoulders and looked the commandant in the eyes.

"If that's what it takes," Halt said before he shoved past the commandant to go to Abelard. Crowley watched him with anger and desperation as he swung easily onto the horse's back.

"Just promise me you won't do anything extreme." Crowley's voice wasn't confident; it was more of a plea then any command. He knew that being a Ranger meant everything to Halt but he also knew that Halt was dedicated to his apprentice and in the long run dedication would win over.

"I can't make that promise Crowley," Halt said before tapping Abelard's sides and riding back into the fenlands, leaving Crowley on the beautiful beach.

"This isn't going to end well," Crowley mumbled to his horse as he mounted, as if understanding his master Cropper nodded and gave a soft whinny.

**Don't know if I should leave this here or create a scene where Pauline talks to Halt in the stables before he has to leave for banishment, you tell me please along with how bad you think this is**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ranger's Apprentice or any of its characters**

**I had an hour or so free and figured to add to this**

Halt picked up Abelard's brush and began to run it through his horse's hair. Like all Rangers he had the tendency to talk to his horse and now was no exception. Despite his immersion in the conversation he heard a person walking up behind him. He kept brushing Abelard and waited for the mystery person to come up to him even though he knew who it would be.

"Why?" It wasn't a question but more of a command. Halt pretended to ignore it and continued brushing Abelard. Pauline grabbed his arm lightly and lowered it. He didn't resist it. "Halt. Just tell me," she pleaded. Halt turned to face her and she took a pace back while releasing his arm.

"Like I told King Duncan; I could never handle my drinks too well," Halt said. Pauline shook her head.

"Not once in your life have you ever gotten close to being drunk and I doubt that this happened from having one to many drinks," she said sternly. Halt was surprised at how well she seemed to know him.

"Then what do you purpose happened?" His voice seemed a little harsher than he had meant it to be but she seemed unfazed by it.

"That's why I'm here. I just want to know Halt. You love being a Ranger and you love Araluen so why did you do it?"

"Will," was all he answered with a softer voice. Pauline's stern expression turned softer at the mention of his lost apprentice.

"King Duncan was going to let you go in a few more weeks; why not just wait?" She had refrained from using the accusatory tone and instead tried to sound gentle. Halt was shaking his head before she finished speaking.

"In a few more weeks Will might be dead. I need to do this now." He turned back to Abelard. "I made a promise and I need to stick to it." He took a deep breath and stopped brushing Abelard but didn't turn back around. "You know I promised Daniel. I can't let him down twice," Halt said quietly. Pauline didn't answer immediately.

"I know that you promised him but do you really think Will would be proud of you now? He looks up to you Halt. How do you think he's going to react when he finds out that you got banished for him?" This time she couldn't keep the accusing tone away.

"I don't care what he thinks about it; I didn't promise him," he answered. He set the brush down and turned towards her. "It doesn't matter anyway. What's done is done."

"Duncan would be more than happy to lessen the punishment if you defend your actions. You could stay and then go with his consent in a few weeks. You could stay a Ranger," she added. Halt shook his head.

"I will not beg for mercy. I committed treason and my punishment is being banished for a year. And like I said, Will might be dead in a few weeks. I need to leave now. I'll keep my promise if it's the last thing I do." Halt turned and tightened the girths on Abelard's saddle. Pauline searched for an argument but couldn't come up with anything. "It's not as if I'm going to be missed much. As far as I can tell people consider me grim," Halt added as he turned back around. Pauline smiled weakly and Halt felt a little better that he wasn't leaving on a completely bad note.

Making sure that he still had his necklace under his shirt Halt mounted swiftly and tapped Abelard forward a couple paces. Tug followed and soon they were outside in the dampening air.

"I'm coming Will," Halt said as he crossed the drawbridge out of the Castle. Abelard gave a snort and Halt patted his neck. "I promise."

**Please review**


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